'Cash' and carry

Can a local drag queen rule the roost on VH1?

Justin Derke would be a standout in any crowd. The 6-foot-7-inch Lansing resident can’t help it.

“I see above everybody,” he said, relaxing in a booth at Gone Wired Café. “When I shrink myself down to other people’s heights, I want to be tall again. At concerts, I can be in the back and still see. It has its advantages and disadvantages.”

Both came into play while the 22-year-old was taping something else that is sure to get him noticed: the VH1 reality series, “Ton of Cash,” which began airing earlier this month. Derke is one of 14 contestants racing to move $1 million in cash from Malibu to Las Vegas by any means they can.

“I have long legs — I really do — and long arms, which are good for picking up the money,” a smiling Derke said, in his mellow, light voice, which provides a sharp contrast to his imposing figure.

Although the 2007 Bath High School graduate can’t say much about the specifics of the program (he described it as “‘The Amazing Race’ meets ‘The Real World,’ except that instead of going to the money, we’re carrying it with us”) he happily provided the details of how he became involved.

“My friend sent me a flier (about the show) on Facebook and I sent the casting director my bio,” he said. “I auditioned in Novi and did a Skype interview. Then, I did a couple more interviews, and off I go to L.A.”

Everyone in the “Cash” race is dealing with financial woes, and Derke, who graduated from Protégé Academy of Cosmetology and spent a year and a half at Lansing Community College, is no exception.

“I only have one credit card, but I have other charge cards,” he said. “I like to shop. A lot.”

How can he not? Derke is also a drag queen — although you wouldn’t guess that from the casual flannel shirt he wore to the interview, or his short, playfully styled red-brown hair with a modest splash of blondness in the front, or the dark, closely trimmed beard that framed his face. (“It’s a whatever thing — it happens," he said, nonchalantly. "I can shave it off and make it look nice.”)

“The hair, the makeup, the glitz, the glamour: I love it all,” he gushed. He started out dressing in drag for Halloween as a teenager, but “then I got very serious about it, with a new wig, dress, makeup, all that.”

Last year, he entered Spiral Video and Dance Bar’s Hot Drag Superstar contest last year, only to find himself the first one eliminated. “This year, I was a lot more put-together and ready for it,” he said: He took first place.

Asked if he has a chance to show off his style in “Ton of Cash,” Derke is cagey: “You’ve got to watch to find out.”

He’s more forthcoming about his desire to hit the road. “I’m a big-city person,” he said, who plans to land in “Chicago, L.A., Miami, somewhere really big.”

After all, Derke continues to get bigger himself.

“I’m still growing,” he said, with a sigh. “When I graduated from high school, I was six-feet-four. These shoes are size 13, and they’re a little tight. But I drink a lot of coffee, which I hope will stunt my growth.”